Recognize the pirate

HAKI has pursued an active development process since its inception in 1956 in order to place our scaffold systems at the forefront as far as safety and user-friendliness are concerned. The pirates merely copy an existing design, which means that they are always a step behind, both with respect to design and choice of material.

It is important to remember that, according to HAKI’s specification, you must not mix pirate copies with HAKI’s original components. Warranties and insurances no longer apply if original components are mixed with pirate copies.

Although there is a great difference between a pirate copy and a genuine HAKI component, it may be difficult to see which is which at first glance. We have therefore produced this little list.

In general, however, it may be said that a HAKI component looks much better in terms of quality than the corresponding pirate copy. Check pockets, welds, joints and edges – this is where the difference is most obvious. If they look raw, rough and manually welded and have sharp corners and edges, there is no doubt that you have a pirate copy in front of you.

10 ways of recognizing a pirate copy

1. The marking - HAKI components have a logotype and a year stamped into the metal, making them fully traceable. The pirate copy has no HAKI marking.2. The sticker - HAKI components have a HAKI sticker with all certifications. Pirate copies have neither stickers nor certifications.3. The pockets – HAKI’s pockets are welded by a robot in order to control the strength of the welded joint holding the pockets and are guaranteed to withstand a load of at least 5 tonnes. The pirate copy has manually welded pockets and there is a risk of their breaking under heavy loads.4. The welds – the pirate copy has poor welds and spatter, posing a risk of injury.5. The hooks – the pirate copy has hooks with sharp corners and edges, posing a risk of injury.6. The spigots - HAKI standards have spigots that are made by reshaping the ends of the standard tube for easier erection and maximum material strength without risking weaknesses on account of welds.7. The spring locking catch – you can recognize HAKI by its patented spring locking catch.8. The surface treatment – all HAKI’s steel components are hot-dip galvanized.9. The weight – the pirate copies have a much greater weight on account of poorer steel quality.10. The single tube beam – HAKI’s single tube beam has patented pear-shaped ends for maximum strength.

Other things that may be useful to know are that

Unlike HAKI, the pirates have a very limited range of products and offer no accessories whatsoever.

The pirate copies are not produced in Sweden or Hungary.

Unlike HAKI components, the pirate copies are not produced in accordance with EN 12810 and EN 12811.

Unlike HAKI’s, the welders of the pirate copies are not certified in accordance with EN ISO 3834-3.

Unlike HAKI components, the pirate copies are not tested by SP Technical Research Institute of Sweden.

Unlike HAKI components, the pirate copies are not quality-certified in accordance with ISO 9001.